*Sensitive content warning: Article includes the topic of sexual assault and rape*
After a year of not being able to put on plays and musicals, Bradley theater is back.
The week of March 24 through March 27, the Bradley theater department is live-streaming its performance of “Good Kids” written by Naomi Iizuka. In addition to the stream, the theater department will have the performance recorded and posted for on-demand viewing access on the department’s website from March 31 to April 4.
“Good Kids” is a play based on the true story of the 2012 Steubenville rape case, centered around 12 high school teens in Ohio and what they saw and experienced at a party where someone was sexually assaulted.
The production is being directed by senior theater performance major Grace Sergott, only the third Bradley undergraduate student to direct a production.
“I think it’s the demonstration of the fact that a really motivated student can go pretty far in our program,” said theater department chairperson Scott Kanoff. “It’s unusual in undergrad theater programs, even those who have a directing major — which we do not, we have an informal emphasis in directing — but I think it’s a demonstration of how far a student can go.”
Sergott said she gets her motivation from her mom, who she watched direct community theater growing up.
“[Directing] is a dream come true, honestly,” Sergott said. “I still can’t fully believe this is real. I never thought this would come into fruition, much less that the play that I would be able to work on would be something as impactful and important as ‘Good Kids’.”
The play talks about social media and how it plays a role in how people perceive rape and sexual assault, as well as commentary about societal views of assaults, gender-related crimes, social class and victim-blaming, just to name a few topics.
“Doing plays is great, but it’s rare that we are able to do gems like ‘Good Kids’ that actually feel like we are making a change, telling these stories that need to be told and [starting] these conversations that need to be had,” Sergott said.
Last year, Sergott was the one to bring “Good Kids” to the theater department’s attention as a possible production. Sergott talked directly to Kanoff, who then took it to the rest of the department.
“We [the theater department] really thought it would be a great play for us to do,” Kanoff said. “We thought it would be great for the Bradley community and the Peoria community, and we were very excited about Grace directing it.”
The department has spent the past year preparing to perform the play by working out how to make costuming and stage presence work, while not being able to be all in the same room. They set up 12 acting booths all over the Hartmann Center with their own cameras, microphones, green screens and other equipment necessary for the cast to perform on Zoom.
Additionally, Kanoff worked on how to be able to set up Zoom in a way that would best represent the play and allow full-body views of the actors.
“It’s not what we had in mind, but I’m very proud of everybody,” Kanoff said. “Everybody has worked so hard and learned so many new skills. It will be very interesting to see what we can take from this when we are back in live production.”
